The showcase of the best Czech films, Czech Film Week, kicked off on Monday August 15 with a screening of the award-winning film Occupation at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque. It was introduced by the director Michal Nohejl himself, who surprised the audience with a short speech in Hebrew before the screening.
During the evening, director Nohejl expressed concerns about whether the film would be comprehensible to Israeli audiences. Not because of the language barrier (the film was screened with both English and Hebrew subtitles), but because of its specific subject matter. It is about the experience of Czechs during the period of normalisation - after the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops in 1968 - and how ideals crumble and characters break down when people hate the regime they live under, but at the same time do not want to complicate their daily lives with open rebellion.
The director's concerns were dispelled by the words of praise from several audience members during an open discussion after the performance. According to them, the film is relevant in the light of current world events.
The Occupation won four Czech Film Critics' Awards and three Czech Lions. The film will be also screened on Tuesday and Wednesday in Jerusalem and Haifa.
The next film on the programme is the iconic Czech comedy Firemen's Ball by the world-famous director Miloš Forman. The festival will also feature one of his first films, Black Peter. Last but not least, Israeli cinema audiences can look forward to the new comedy Bet on Friendship, about four friends and their struggle against a midlife crisis.
